BCC touts benefits of maintaining organic farming practices

Sunday

Aug 26, 2012 at 12:01 AMAug 26, 2012 at 1:51 PM

Bristol Community College in Fall River is now in its fourth year of offering its organic agriculture program to students, calling the nongenetically modified, earth-friendly farming practice one of the fastest-growing segments of U.S. agriculture.

“Organic food is not just for the gardening elite,” said James Corven, a biology professor who coordinates the organic agriculture program at BCC. “Organic farming is now is becoming mainstream, and it’s the way we are going to have food in our future.”

Marc Larocque

Bristol Community College in Fall River is now in its fourth year of offering its organic agriculture program to students, calling the nongenetically modified, earth-friendly farming practice one of the fastest-growing segments of U.S. agriculture.

“Organic food is not just for the gardening elite,” said James Corven, a biology professor who coordinates the organic agriculture program at BCC. “Organic farming is now is becoming mainstream, and it’s the way we are going to have food in our future.”

Corven said when BCC started its organic agriculture program, it was the only community college east of the Mississippi River that offered such a program.
“It’s very innovative,” he said.

BCC offers five courses as part of the program, including organic farming practices, water management and organic beekeeping methods. Students can earn an Organic Agriculture Technician certificate as part of the program. The certificate is designed to prepare students to use ecological production techniques that minimize pollution and create a healthier, tastier product.

Corven said the college decided to offer the organic agriculture courses because it has attracted a new generation of consumers who worry about the overuse of synthetics in food production for personal health and environmental reasons. Pesticides, he said, are unsustainable because they deplete the soil, ruin its chemistry and cause long-term problems with the land.

“There is a major economic and social need for organic farming,” said Corven, who has been spending the end of the summer at his farm in Vermont harvesting organic tomatoes, beans, potatoes, cucumbers and squash. “Organic farming is not what it used to be. It’s much more sophisticated and productive than it used to be. There is nothing more important than our food supply, and to have a quality food supply — that’s why we got this program started.”

Corven suggested that, while many may view organic food as expensive, it’s more expensive to deal with the treatment of cancer caused by foods grown with synthetic pesticides and synthetic fertilizer.

Corven said the program has been very popular at the school. He added that a related student organization at BCC, called “The Seeds of Sustainability,” is one of the most active student groups on campus, providing public events that include movie screenings on organic farming and workshops on composting.

Corven said that, while not every student who takes the courses goes on to become an organic farmer, they all take the lessons with them.

“We have people who are working on farms, and people who have come from farms are going back to the farm with better skills,” Corven said. “Some start farms, but not everyone can just go out and afford to buy a farm. Some go into food organizations, co-ops or into community development for local production of food for places where there isn’t good access to gardening or food supplies. Some go into other fields but take this knowledge with them to fields of education or business.

“They know what the food system is all about and why it’s important. They pass it on to their peers and colleagues. It goes in all different directions. A number of people are really enthusiastic and get out and want to teach others the same thing.”